More Than One Shot

"Wide-eyed, baptized, and still wanting to sin, but thank God we get more than just one shot." -Luke Bryan "We Rode in Trucks"

I am a failure. In fact, I'm probably the biggest one out there. I have to try and try before I get things right, I often wish I could take back words I have said, and I am forever longing to be better at almost everything. The more and more I pay attention to the world around me and the view of Christians in our society today, the more I understand why people are so turned off by Christianity. I myself have been called a hypocrite before, and here is the thing that a lot of people don't get about Christians...we are not perfect. We are still human, we still make mistakes, we still hurt people through our words and actions, and we are still failures by the world's standards.

Here's the hope for all of humanity though...we get more than one shot. It is not a walk-on-a-tightrope life, where if you have one slip, you're done for. It's not even a three-strike-and-you're-out sorta deal. It is forgiveness beyond all measure and unending grace overflowing from a loving God. Romans 3:23-24 reads, "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came through Jesus Christ." We are not perfect, and we never will be, but for those of us who are real Christians (not those who call themselves Christians as a default religion), God's forgiveness covers anything and everything we could ever do. We just have to ask for forgiveness and accept it.

In addition, for those who are not yet Christians, you get more the just one shot as well. What you are accepting is a little different though. You are getting the opportunity to accept the loving, gracious, miraculous God into your life and in doing so, you give your life back to Him. Being a Christian is not easy, if anything it's harder than before, but the abundance of love that God offers you covers any sort of temptations that you may fall to or stumbling blocks that may arise. "Love covers a multitude of sins." -Peter 4:8b

Challenge:  Accept your imperfection, and thank God for a multitude of chances.